Victoria “Torrie” Pheister

Victoria “Torrie” Pheister née Bittner, beloved wife of Thomas Pheister, Sr. for 50 years, died in Shorewood, Wisconsin on January 1, 2022 at the age of 70 due to advanced dementia. Torrie was preceded in death by her father and mother Conrad Bittner and Mary Bittner née Maier as well as her step-mother Billie Bittner and her sister-in-law Mary Anne Bittner. She is survived by her husband, four children, Thomas, Jr. (Mara), Meghan (Nathan) Boekholder, Alexandra (Jonas) Berge and Ethan (Jennifer Vilkoski), and 9 grandchildren. She is mourned by her siblings C. Paul Bittner, Christine (Terrence) Fries, Cynthia (Michael) O’Day and Barbara (Steven) Lapinski along with numerous nieces, nephews and cousins.

The oldest of five children, Torrie was born in Oshkosh, Wisconsin to Conrad and Mary Maier Bittner on July 12, 1951. She grew up in Huntington Woods, Michigan where she met her future husband in middle school. Torrie graduated from Berkley High School in 1969 and then studied History at Michigan State University. She married the love of her life on October 2nd 1971 in Berkley. After their wedding, Torrie and Tom moved six times in six years and were apart more than together owing to Tom’s stint in the Navy. While Tom was deployed, Torrie spent time working with adults and children with disabilities. After the service, Torrie and Tom relocated to Wisconsin, finally settling in Shorewood in 1979 where they raised their family.

Torrie was a dedicated volunteer at her children’s schools, her church, the Riverwest Food Pantry and many other organizations. During the 22 years she had children at Lake Bluff Elementary School she served on the PTO and returned to volunteer when her grandchildren started school there.

She loved reading, old radio shows, John Denver music, puzzles and traveling, especially by train. The highlight of her traveling was her cruise from New York to England followed by 70 days of exploration around Europe. She was an avid fan of all Wisconsin sports. In particular, she loved her Milwaukee Brewers and Green Bay Packers, once joking that she would rather watch the games alone so as not to be distracted.

Torrie was fiercely independent yet intensely family-oriented. A true matriarch,     she organized, cared for and supported her family. She loved cooking and believed that recipes were just suggestions. Whether it was dropping off forgotten items at school, attending her children’s sporting events-even when they were the coach, offering advice or watching grandbabies, Torrie always put her phamily first.

Due to Covid, there will be a celebration of life in the summer.

If desired, memorials in Torrie’s name can be made to the Riverwest Food Pantry (2610 N. Martin Luther King Jr Drive, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53212) or to your local food pantry.